Its arranged!
by XotroyellaoX
Summary: Troy Bolton, 23, Captain of the L.A Lakers. Gabriella Montez, 19, Valadictorian at East High. Both for them are forced into an Arranged Marriage by their parents. will they help materialize each others dreams and find love in a loveless marriage? TG,ZS,CT
1. Chapter 1

"What the hell dad! An arranged marriage? I'm only 23!" yelled troy. He had just found out that his father had arranged him to marry a girl he didn't even know.

Mr. Bolton looked up from his paper and looked at troy," troy, this girl is very good, her mother says she can cook and clean and is very caring. We will be meeting them tomorrow so I suggest you go and get your suit ready for tomorrow."

Troy sighed, it was so surreal, it didn't seem like it was happening, it was just plain weird, and Whats worse, is that this girl is only 19! 19! That's barely an age to get married, what about her education?

But even troy knew that arguing with Mr. Bolton at a time like this was useless, so, he just left it at that and let his father take full control of his life.

"whatever dad, I'm gonna go shoot some hoops 'round back" troy picked up the basketball lying close to the sofa and went outside, just to shoot hoops for a while, get over the mess he was in.

-

-

Gabriella, troy's fiancé, knew this was coming, ever since she was 16, her parents had planned her life out and this was exactly what was happening, but Gabriella wanted so much more than that, she wanted to go to university, get a degree, a job and support herself, but her family was very traditional and that just wasn't how it worked.

She carefully slipped on the expensive thai silk dress her dad bought for her, she had dreaded this day ever since she was 16, but now, it was finally happening, and all she wanted to do was to curl up in her bed and cry herself to sleep.

She heard her fathers impatient hollering coming from down the stairs and started her decent down the stairs.

-

-

Troy was nervous beyond belief, he, after finding out his predicament had wondered about this mystery girl through the night and this had given him slightly dark circles and his eyes were more red that usual, what did she look like? Was she nice?

Questions like this kept running through his mind the whole time he waited for her family to arrive.

When the door bell rang, Mr. Bolton was the first one to open it." Ahhh, the Montez family! Come in! come in! how are you guys doing?"

"excellent Jack, I would like you to meet my daughter, Gabriella." Said Mr. Montez as he presented his daughter to her future in laws.



"nice to meet you Mr. Bolton" said Gabriella meekly.

"likewise, Gabriella. I would like you to meet my son, Troy."

Gabriella looked up immediately, only to be hit with the most electric blue eyes she'd ever seen.

"nice to meet you Gabriella" said troy politely.

"you too." Smiled Gabriella.

"troy, why don't you take her to your room, so that both of you can talk." Smiled Mrs. Bolton.

"uh, sure mom." Replied troy before haistly grabbing Gabriella's hand and pulling her up the stairs.

Once they reached troy's room, they both relaxed a bit, happy to be out of their parents eyes.

Gabriella shyly looked at troy and noticed the dark circles and the bags under his eyes.

"you look tired," she said softly.

He whipped his head around a looked at her.

"yea," he breathed," I am."

"oh, well you could sleep, I don't mind really."

Troy chuckled at her thoughtfulness," no, no, its okay, what kind of host would i be if I fell asleep?"

"um, troy, I'm – I'm kinda getting married to you, it doesn't really matter to me, I'll probably see you sleep everyday, but you look really tired, I don't want you to fall sick, you have a game 2 weeks after the wedding right?"

Troy gawked at her," h-how'd you know I had a game."

Gabriella sighed," my dad made me go through it, he said it was all part of being a good wife."

"I – I its okay, I'll uh sleep later."

At this point it time, troy was truly intrigued by the slender creature in front of him. She most certainly didn't want it, but she took it in her stride, as if it was her job, her duty.

"Gabriella?" troy said hesitantly," I, I know your 19 and that means you haven't gone to university yet, don't you want to go?"

Gabriella's eyes snapped up to him," of course I want to go, I've always wanted to go, ever since I was a kid, I wished I be a doctor, or, or a nutritionalist, in one of those bleached white coats and sterilized goves, that's _all _I ever wanted to do."

"then, why? Why did you agree to this?"



"do you think I had a chance troy? I had known I was getting married at 19 ever since I was 16. My dad told me my fate when I was 16! Do you know what a sweet sixteen really is? Its supposed to be a coming of age, when a daughter is finally fit to be married, that's what sweet sixteen really is. And my parents, my parents decided to wait just because they didn't want to get into trouble with the law."

Troy gasped at Gabriella's complicated life.

They sat in silence after Gabriella's out burst. Suddenly, troy spoke up.

"I wouldn't mind you know Gabriella? I wouldn't mind if you did study while we were married, I really wouldn't"

Gabriella once again looked up at troy," its nice to know troy but, my parents don't work like that, I'm supposed to be a good wife and take care of you not waste my time studying for nothing."

"why is it nothing? Don't you think you deserve it, Gabriella?" troy countered.

"because, because my dad would kill me if he found out, my dad would disown me if I work while I'm married to you. You just don't understand how uptight they really are troy, you just don't understand" Gabriella said, as she willed her tears not to fall.

The tense moment was broken when they heard a faint," dinners ready!" from the bottom of the stairs.

Troy looked at Gabriella once more before getting of the bed and grabbing a coat from his closet.

"come on Gabriella" he whispered as he stuck his hand out towards her.

Gabriella slowly grabbed his hand as she looked up at him.

As soon as he felt her grab her hand he pulled her down the stairs quickly.

"hey mom? Gabriella and I are going out for dinner." Said troy as he slipped on Gabriella's coat for her.

"you can't just take her away like that son!" said Mr. Bolton coming out of the hallway, Mr. and Mrs. Montez, right behind him.

"why not?" troy asked accusingly," she's my fiancé isn't she?"

Troy then grabbed Gabriella's hand and pulled her out of the doorway before slamming the door on their parents faces.

Troy led Gabriella to his car before opening the door for her and jogging around to the drivers side and climbing in himself.

"what was that?" whispered Gabriella as she broke out of her daze



Troy turned to look at Gabriella and smiled," it looked like you have had one too many uncomfortable dinners, I decided that you didn't need that tonight, and so we are gonna get some dinner at one of my favorite diners, call up the dean at UCLA get you in to a univercity and then I'll drop you back home, and you won't say a thing to your parents."

Gabriella turned around and looked at troy," w-what?" she whispered.

" I said we'll get some dinner at my favorite diners." Troy said nochalently.

"no, not that troy, after that, what did you say?" he voice was quiet and desperate, she needed to check if those words really came out of his mouth or not.

"we're gonna call up the dean at UCLA and get you a seat there."

"t-troy, are you serious, you shouldn't toy with someones emotions like that." She whispered tears building up in her eyes.

Troy simply replied by scrolling through his contacts before finding the right one and pressing the green call button.

"hello?... hey Mr. Walters! This is Troy, troy Bolton… yes good to hear from you too. No, I would like to ask you a favor, uh huh…. No no, nothing like that… my fiancé, Gabriella would like to do a course in Medicine or nutrition… you think you could get her in…. uh huh… which one do you think would be more rewarding? Nutrition? I see… I see, yes, I'll send you her grades right away, yes, well thank you Mr. Walters! I guess I'll be seeing you, okay…. Bye bye."

Gabriella stared at troy in awe as he calmly put pressed the red call button to terminate the call.

He looked at her and smiled," your in"

"Oh My God troy!" she whispered through her tears as she pounced on him, hugging him tightly," thank you, thank you, thank you!"

Troy was taken aback at the sudden embrace but slowly wound his arms around her small waist hugging her back," no problem."


	2. Chapter 2

Gabriella sighed happily as she continued to eat her fries slowly. She couldn't believe this was happening, over the span of 30 minutes, a stranger came into her life and made her wildest dreams come true, he got her into a university that was virtually impossible to get into, and yet there she was, officially a UCLA student.

"I can't believe you did that troy." She giggled.

It was the first time troy heard her giggle; it was like music to his ears.

"Ah, but I did. Being a basketball hotshot has its advantages."

Gabriella giggled once more," how come you know the dean?"

"I used to go there, it's a great school, good old Mr. Walters took me under his wing the second I stepped onto the campus, he was more of a father to me in those 4 years than my father ever was." Troy looked down as he said the last part, it was true though, his father never treated him with concern or care whatsoever, all his father ever cared about was troy's basketball status.

It was decided when troy was 6 that he would become a basketball player, he didn't have a choice, and since that day, troy has loved basketball and wanted nothing more but to be a professional basketball player.

"Hey, I know how it feels." Gabriella said with a slight smile on her face as she covered his big calloused hands with her small delicate ones.

Troy smiled back and they continued to converse through the night enjoying each others company.

As the night came to a close, the two young adults felt closer to each other than they had with anyone ever! It was decided that they would go to LA together in troy's private jet the next day so that they could finalize things with the dean and and buy Gabriella's books.

"So you remember your excuse right?" asked troy as he stopped in front of her house.

"yes troy I do, Ryan, your manager called saying that you had to get your ass back to practice because there was a big game coming up and you decided to take me as company because there is a formal event you have to go to and you need a date." Said Gabriella boring-ly, but her eyes still showed a childlike excitement that made troy laugh.

"Good girl, I'll see you tomorrow morning at 7.30." said troy as she opened her door.

"See you" whispered Gabriella before shutting the door softly and walking up the front steps to her house.

-

-



Gabriella smiled to herself as she entered her house, but she quickly wiped the smile of her face as she moved towards her fathers study. She knocked softly and waited for the gruff," come in" to sound.

When it did, she entered the study carefully.

"Good evening father." She greeted softly.

"Good evening Gabriella is there any reason you have come to interrupt my work?" he asked, his face showing no emotion.

"Um, yes, Troy has asked me to accompany him to LA tomorrow morning, he wants me to go because his manager, Ryan has called him back immediately and there will be a formal event he would have to go to and he needs me to be his date."

"I see, very well than, you can go." He said as he looked down to continue his work.

Gabriella fought the smile that was slowly creeping up her face as she left her fathers study.

The second she closed the door, she ran upstairs to pack her bags, she giggled at the prospect of going to such a good school. She imagined herself walking into campus with books in her hands and a 'UCLA' sweatshirt on, oh, it was perfect!

Once she finished packing her bags she called up her best friend, Taylor.

Taylor and Gabriella were both quiet smart; they had been valedictorian at their high school, East High. Taylor however, and gone on to much greater things and was now in the University of Albuquerque.

Needless to say, Gabriella was immensely jealous of Taylor, but she was happy for her too, but when she found out about UCLA, Taylor went mad!

And so after having a very eventful night Gabriella fell into a peaceful sleep, looking forward to the day ahead.

-

-

Troy sighed happily as he closed the door of his room. Today had not been as bad as he thought it would be, in fact, it had been glorious. He just couldn't shake the thoughts of the gorgeous brunette away! She had been all he could think about.

So as he lay in his bed, he couldn't sleep yet again, all he could thing about was the gorgeous brunette and the adventure that lay ahead.


	3. Chapter 3

"Wow," gasped Gabriella as she entered the airport, she had never seen anything like it.

Troy looked at her weirdly," haven't you ever been to an airport before?" he asked her.

Gabriella looked down," actually no, my parents never wanted me to do things like this, you know, travel and see the world, this is my first time. They only allowed me to come because I would be following you." She blushed as she said the last part, but as she looked up she saw troy softly smiling at her.

"I'm glad I'm able to give you that chance." He said softly, Gabriella smiled and pulled him into a warm friendly hug, but as she pulled back she noticed that the dark circles around his eyes were even darker.

"Troy! Are you not sleeping well? The dark circles under your eyes got darker!" she exclaimed

"Relax Gabriella, I'll sleep well in my own bed at home, really, it's okay."

Gabriella smiled as she looked into his eyes," okay," she whispered.

"come on," said troy, grabbing her hands," time to get on board!"

Gabriella smiled politely as the immigration officer checked her passport and put the necessary stamps on it. She was in awe of the whole system, it was very fluid and organized, it just moved.

As troy guided Gabriella through his plane, she was stunned! It was a gorgeous plane, it had dark leather seats and Chinese rosewood tables, the staff was very kind and there was even a bed room and a few plasma 50 inch TVs! It was absolutely gorgeous.

"Okay, this is officially the best moment of my life!" squealed Gabriella as she strapped her self in.

Troy laughed a little before turning serious.

"Gabriella, I know you probably don't want to talk about this, but we're still going to have to get married, and I assume you know that the wedding's a week away, we, uh, we still have to plan it."

Gabriella smiled sadly before turning towards him," I know troy I remember. It's just something I wish I could forget. My mom has already done all the planning; all we have to do is be there."

"Oh, okay. That's great..."

"Uh huh." Smiled Gabriella as the plane started moving. Gabriella's head immediately turned to the windows as she looked out excitedly, she looked just like a small child excited to go on its first flight.

Troy smiled. He liked being there to introduce her to new things, she always looked so innocent and child like. It was truly refreshing from all the sluts that followed him around all day.



Once they were in the air, Gabriella could not stop smiling; the feeling of flying was interesting. She felt as if nothing was moving but as she looked out of the window and saw the clouds drifting by her she had to believe.

Gabriella was snapped out of her revere by an airhostess.

"Good morning Mr. Bolton, Miss Montez."

"Good morning Julie." Replied troy as he smiled politely at her.

"Hi!" said Gabriella in an excited voice.

"Mr. Bolton, you look very tired, how about you go to the bedroom and I'll show Miss Montez around?"

Troy turned towards Gabriella and saw her face light up at the idea.

"sure," he said," I need sleep anyways!"

Gabriella giggled as she got out of the seat after troy.

"Have a good sleep!" she said, smiling.

He just smiled tiredly back before heading to the bedroom.

Julie turned around to face Gabriella," now Miss Montez-"

Gabriella cut her of," Gabriella."

"Okay, so now Gabriella, I shall take you on the official tour of the Bolton plane and I will introduce you to everyone! Let's go!" said Julie before leading Gabriella to the cockpit.

"This is the cockpit and these are our pilots, James Tanner and Edward Cullen **(A/n: I know what you're thinking…I just love twilight! I loveeee Edward!! Lol. So you shall live with it kapeesh? Kapeesh)**

"Nice to meet you Miss Montez!" said Edward smiling.

"Nice to meet you to Edward but please call me Gabriella, Miss Montez sounds so formal!"

James smiled," okay Gabriella. So is Julie showing you around Mr. Bolton's marvelous plane?"

"Yes!" squealed Gabriella.

Edward laughed," mind if we join?"

Suddenly Gabriella's face fell," bu-but, who'll pilot the plane?" she asked softly.

Suddenly the cockpit was filled with roars of laughter coming from Edward, James and Julie.

"oh Gabriella," sighed Julie," have you never been on a plane before? Planes have auto pilots too, so these two boys can take a rest once in a while.



"Oh," said Gabriella, she turned cheery again," okay! Let's go!"

As Julie, Edward and James lead Gabriella through the plane she couldn't help but be in awe of the exquisite design and work of the plane. It was beautiful, the colors were soft and relaxing, the seats were big and comfortable and the small little kitchen equipped with only a microwave and a small fridge was extremely cozy and cute.

As Gabriella returned to her seat, she asked," who designed this plane? It is wonderful!"

James smiled," Mr. Bolton of course, no interior designers at all, he bought the plane and he designed it but the installation was of course from a proper company."

"I think we better get back James." Warned Edward, "it's been ½ hour already."

"Yea, your right lets go, see you later Gabriella."

"Oh wait! Can't you stay? Troy's sleeping and it's gonna be totally boring if all you guys go!" exclaimed Gabriella.

"don't worry Gabriella," said Julie," I'll stay with you."

Gabriella smiled.

"bye Gabriella!" called James and then he turned his attention to Julie," I'll uh… see you later right Julie?" he asked as he stared into her eyes.

Julie, who was standing next to Gabriella gulped," uh, yea James, I'll see you later."

Gabriella raised her eyebrows and exchanged glances with Edward.

"Bye" said James softly before walking away, Edward trailing behind him.

Gabriella turned around to see a deep blush creeping up on Julie's face, a cheeky grin overcame her face,"oooo! Julie likes James! Julie likes James!" she sang.

"Gabriella!" she hissed," be quiet!"

"Why? Afraid he'll hear?"

"Just, just…Arg! I do not like James in that way!"

"Whatever Julie, you know you do, and he likes you back too!"

Julie blushed again and Gabriella laughed! Julie really was smitten with James!

-

-

It had been 2 hours since the girls last talked to James and Edward. They had been keeping themselves company talking about anything and everything before Julie told her that they were about to land and troy needed to be woken up.



"I'll go," said Gabriella as she got up and made her way to the bedroom door. She knocked, no reply, she knocked louder, still no reply she knocked even louder and still no reply! Eventually Gabriella pushed open the door to see the, in her words, most beautiful thing she had ever seen.

There lay troy Bolton, his chest was bare and his boxers were worn low. The white comforter had been thrown of his body and onto the floor in a lump and his bronze hair was tousled, he was gorgeous!

Gabriella smiled before walking up to troy.

"Troy, you need to wake up." She said lightly resting her hands on the side of the mattress, no reply.

"Troy!"

He groaned and turned to face her in his sleep.

Gabriella's breath hitched when she saw him. She shook the thoughts out of her head before lightly moving her hand across his face," troy, you need to wake up! We're landing." No reply.

Gabriella rolled her eyes before forcing his eyes open.

He groaned loudly before squatting her way," fine! Fine! I'm up!"

"Good" said Gabriella satisfied," lets go, I have loads to tell you!"

Troy smiled before getting up and slipping his clothes back on, Gabriella looked away blushing.

Once he was done his hand slipped onto the small of Gabriella's back. He slowly guided her out and into her seat.

"So what did you want to tell me?" he asked, curious.

"Did you know that there is a little something -something going on between Julie and James!" se squealed.

Troy laughed, of course he'd known! You'd have to be blind not to notice!

"Yes I have actually; it's been like that since they first got here! Both of them are just too shy to say anything… its sad really."

Gabriella smiled slightly before turning to the windows," UCLA, here I come!" she whispered.


	4. Chapter 4

"Troy! My boy! Good to see you again!" said the dean as he engulfed troy in a bear hug.

"Nice to see you too dean!" smiled troy.

"And you must be Gabriella." Said the dean, smiling as he shook hands with the young girl.

"Yes sirs, nice too meet you!" said Gabriella.

The dean led both of them into the office," now, let's get down to business. Miss Montez, can I see your high school records?" he asked.

"Sure," said Gabriella as she handed the dean a red folder with a big EH printed in white.

"Ahh, east high school in alberqerque, were young troy came from too. It's a good school. No doubt." The dean looked at her reports and smiled," all A's not a single b or c in sight. Impressive. So troy tells me you want to do nutrition?"

"Yes sir. It's always interested me." Said Gabriella confidently.

"You do know that if you join now, you'll be back by a semester, you will have to catch up." The dean said seriously.

"I know, sir, I'll do my best. I promise."

"Hmm. Okay miss Montez. I trust troy and so I'll give you a chance. But you will have to do an extra test that the teacher will set for you and if you get below a 75, you will have to leave. Is that agreeable?" Asked the dean

"Absolutely sir!"

The dean smiled at her enthusiastic- ness," excellent. Here are your books." said the dean as he gave her a huge stack of books," here is your schedule," he handed her a piece of paper," and here, is your UCLA sweatshirt!" he handed her an official UCLA sweatshirt," off you go now! I have a meeting in 5 minutes!" said the dean as he dismissed them.

"Thanks dean!" said troy as he hugged him and Gabriella noticed that the dean's eyes softened considerably.

"No problem troy, I hope I'll be seeing you around more."

"Yea! Bye!" said troy as he lead Gabriella.

-

-

Gabriella giggled as she watched troy cook. It was decided that she would try his famous pasta and she would not help whatsoever so she settled her self on top on a simple black stool in the kitchen, rested her hands on the dark green marble top of the island.

Troy looked like a pro, chopping up garlic and tomatoes, adding just the right amount of spice and tasting to make sure he got everything perfect.



"Who knew the basketball superstar could cook?" teased Gabriella.

"Who knew shy timid Gabriella had a voice?" he teased back.

Gabriella just threw her head back and laughed and troy couldn't help but smile as the sweet sound filled his ears.

"All done!" announced troy as he threw of his 'kiss the cook' apron.

He carefully presented the food on some simple white plates while Gabriella grabbed a bottle of coke and 2 glasses.

Troy raised an eyebrow," coke?"

"What? Nothing like coke to wash down some pasta!" she smiled as she walked out of the kitchen, setting the glass and the coke on the table.

Troy followed her and they both sat cross legged on the floor while they watched,' the rush hour.'

_Perfect evening_

They both thought simultainously.


	5. Chapter 5

Gabriella smiled as she shook hands with Sharpay Evans, her first impression was, well, not the first impression you would want other people to have of you. Sharpay had never changed and still loved pink and sequins, so naturally, when she came to meet an important person such as the future wife of her 'big brother', she just had to go all out.

She wore a white top with the words Queen covered in silver sequins and bright pink skinnies.

"w-wow" Gabriella managed to get out.

Troy laughed," you better have her back in once piece Evans!" he joked

"Of course troy, wouldn't have it any other way" smiled sharpay innocently," credit card please!"

Troy rolled his eyes as he put his platinum card in Sharpay's hands," you better not corrupt her mind and make her into another pink princess, shar, "he hollered as sharpay dragged Gabriella out of the door," one's enough for the world!"

-

-

"So Gabriella, how old are you?" asked sharpay.

"I'm 19 actually." Said Gabriella quietly

"Really?" asked sharpay, her eyes wide," that's awfully young to get married!"

"I know, but my parents…" Gabriella trailed of.

Sharpay smiled sympathetically," its ok, I get it, but don't worry, troy's a great guy and you have us now. We'll take care of you!"

"Who's we?" asked Gabriella.

"the gang," replied sharpay simply," you'll meet them soon enough, don't worry" then sharpay started walking into the mall," ahh, my favorite place, come on! Time to shop!" and then sharpay dragged Gabriella into the first shop.

"Oh wow! That looks amazing, you should totally try it gab's!"

Gabriella smiled at the nickname sharpay had given her. She meekly stepped forward and looked at the price tag, her jaw dropped

"1000 dollars! No way! I do not have that much money sharpay!" said Gabriella.

"But troy does! This shopping trip is supposed to be on troy, you know, he'd murder me if I let you spend even a penny!" said sharpay.

"But – but – I cannot rob someone like that! Even if it is Troy!"



In reply, sharpay flipped her pink phone open and pressed number 5 speed dial. It rang a few times before someone answered.

"Hullo?" asked the voice.

"Hi troy! Its sharpay!"

"Sharpay I know its you, I have something called caller id ya know."

"Whatever troy, your saint of a fiancé won't spend anything if it's on you! Or me for that matter!"

"What? Why?" asked troy, this was new for him, every single girl he ad ever dated pounced on the opportunity to spend his money.

"She says, I quote, I cannot rob someone like that! Even if it's troy! End -quote"

Troy chuckled," give her the phone." He said.

"Sure" said sharpay as she passed the phone to Gabriella.

"Hello?" asked Gabriella.

"Hey Gabriella. Whats up?"

"Troy Bolton! I am not gonna spend 1000 dollars on a dress on _your _expense! Its just wrong!" she shouted into the receiver.

"Come on, you know you want it! I don't mind really. To be honest, I have too much money for my own good! Please Gabriella. Don't you want to go into UCLA looking totally awesome?"

"I know but-"

"Not buts! Just buy whatever you feel like okay? It's either that or has sharpay on you back for a month. Take your pick." Said troy.

Gabriella giggled a bit before replying," fine," she said grudgingly," don't blame me when your bank balance is half of what it was before!"

Troy smiled as the melodious sound of her giggles filled his ears," I have to go now, I have training, I'll be back later okay? Have fun!"

"Okay, you have fun too."

Troy snorted," its conditioning, conditioning can never be fun!"

Gabriella giggled once more, she found that she did that a lot when she was with troy," well try!"

"Fine, fine, I will. Later." He said.

"Bye" she said as she flipped the phone shut and returned it to its owner.



"So?" asked sharpay, her eyes wide in anticipation.

"Okay, okay, we'll buy the dress." Said Gabriella a slight smile playing on her lips.

"Yay!" squealed sharpay as she grabbed Gabriella's arm and lead her to the first cubicle.

-

-

Gabriella groaned as she slid into the pink limo, obviously belonging to Sharpay. Her body was aching from all the walking and carrying (the bags). However, sharpay was a chirpy as ever.

"I think it was a fruitful trip! Don't you Gabs?" Said Sharpay as she sat down, her back straight as she checked her hair in the mirror.

Gabriella groaned in response.

"Well you'd better get ready for Sunday! We're gonna hit some malls on the other side of town!" Chirped sharpay as she put on some more lip gloss. Gabriella's eyes widened at the thought," oh no, no, no, no, no, no! Have you seen the amount of clothes I bought! And they were so expensive too! I've had enough shopping for this year… or at least until Christmas."

Sharpay just smiled as she told the driver where to go.

-

-

Gabriella breathed a sigh of relief when she and Troy _finally _got all the stuff up to the master bedrooms walk in closet.

"Did you have fun Bella?" asked troy.

"Bella?" questioned Gabriella

"yea, new nickname," he grinned," so did you have fun?"

"Oh my god Troy yes! I haven't had so much fun for a while!" she squealed, but then she said in a serious voice," but I never want to go shopping again."

Troy threw his head back and laughed.

Troy opened his mouth to say something but he was interrupted by a," hey troy! Can you and your fiancé stop with the romance and come downstairs!"

Troy groaned loudly before resting his head on Gabriella's shoulders and shouting," there was no romance Chad! We were just talking!"

"Whatever helps you sleep at night," came the curt reply from a mysterious stranger. Gabriella raised an eyebrow as troy grabbed her hand and pulled her down the stairs," time to meet the gang!" she whispered to her.


	6. Chapter 6

**Gabriella's P.O.V**

As I followed troy down the stairs, a rush of thoughts went through my head. What if I'm not what his friends expected? What if they don't like me? Or worse… what if their bunch of pot bellied, bald – headed, pork chop eating, beer drinking idiots!

I was so deep in my thoughts that I didn't see the huge mass of curly brown hair attack me! I felt it wrap its arms around me and hug me really tight. I started laughing; all I could see was brown fuzz! When the 'hair' finally pulled away, I saw, beneath the hair a tall, dark man. He had on a wide smile, and his eyes were shining. I laughed again," You have awesome hair!" I said through my giggles.

His smile got even wider," really?" he said, his voice sounded eager and happy," I use some axe shampoo and just a dab of wash of conditioner too mu – "

"Really Chad, we do not hear the secret to your beautiful hair, I've heard about it too many times already!" said a short girl with brown hair sarcastically, she stuck her hand out and smiled," I'm Kelsie and this lunkhead next to me is Chad Danforth.

Chad opened his mouth to protest but a tall very _very _tall boy with brown eyes stopped him," enough Chad, we really don't want to scare her of on her first day here! I'm Zeke!" he too, stuck out his hand.

Unfortunately, all I got out was," wow, your tall." He really was, even taller than troy!

He threw his head back and laughed," thanks," he said when his laugher died down," I get that a lot."

"And I'm Jason" smiled a fair skinned boy with dark auburn hair. I smiled, he seemed sane enough.

"And I'm Gabriella." I said," its great to meet you all!"

**Troy's P.O.V**

Chad love's her already. The second anyone compliments Chad Danforth's Hair, he or she is his new most favorite person. Kelsie seems to like her too, so do Zeke and Jason, and I'm sure that Sharpay already likes her, if she didn't she wouldn't be so nice to her.

My friends like her!

**No One's P.O.V**

After the formal introductions were done, the Gang made their way to Troy's small Cinema.

Gabriella gaped in awe at the medium sized cinema. It looked so realistic with the red chairs, the popcorn machine and soda machine at the side, even the projector! It was marvelous!

**Gabriella's P.O.V**

As the gang sat down, I noticed evident pairs. Zeke and Sharpay sat down next to each other, Jason and Kelsie sad next to each other and troy and I were obviously gonna sit next to each other. I looked at Chad and I saw a twinkle of sadness in his eyes. I immediately felt bad; he didn't deserve to be left out.

I decided that I would sit next to Chad, he seemed like a really interesting person, and I really didn't want him to feel alienated.

"Hey Chad!" I said as I walked up to his seat," Mind if I sit next to you?" I asked.

"No, not at all!" he replied.

Just then troy came in and he saw me sitting next to Chad, he gave me a huge smile and sat down next to me, it looked like he had the same idea.

"What do you guys wanna watch?" asked troy.

"A walk to remember!" screamed Sharpay and all the boys groaned.

"Step up!" yelled Zeke.

"The white Chick!" screamed Chad.

"Raise your voice!" yelled Kelsie.

"I wanna watch dogeball!" whined Troy.

"How about baby's day out?" I questioned.

Everyone smiled and agreed, even the boys.

I didn't watch the movie much though, I was talking to Chad and Troy the whole time, they were telling me about how they met (apparently, in pre school, Troy sat down next to Chad, and Chad never left him alone since!), their life at east high and their lives now.

I realized that they had a very close relationship, they were like brothers, no matter what the other one said, they stuck by each other through thick and thin. Their brother - brother relationship was very admirable. I decided that I wanted to get to know Chad better, he seemed like a really cool guy and very funny too.

**Troy's P.O.V**

I smiled as I saw Chad and Gabriella interact. Our gang was slowly breaking out into couples, and now with Gabriella as my wife, I was worried that Chad might feel like the third wheel. It seemed like Gabriella had the same idea.

By the first 10 minutes the 3 of us were talking like we'd known each other forever! Chad and Gabriella seem to getting along really well! I'm glad, I was worried that Gabriella wouldn't fit in or wouldn't like the gang, I might not love her like a man should his wife, but the cohesion between her and the gang really is really very important.

**NO ONES P.O.V**

By the end of the night, Gabriella had really become one of the gang. Everyone adored her and she adored everyone! It was absolutely perfect.


	7. Chapter 7

Gabriella sighed.

Today was her wedding day. She was in one of the guest rooms in Troy's house. Troy was probably in another one getting ready too. They had decided that to save money, effort and time, they would hold the wedding in Troy's vast back yard.

It was amazingly decorated. The alter was made up of a tiny little stage about 30 cm high. It was white in color and had an arch made of gorgeous red and white roses going above it. In front of the alter there was a narrow beige carpet, which is meant to be the aisle. There were numerous bench style chairs placed on either side of the aisle in neat rows. The wedding planner, hired by Mrs. Montez was running around frantically, barking instructions into the Bluetooth receiver attached to her ear.

The waiters ran around fixing the bows on the reception chairs and covering the food to make sure it doesn't get dirty.

Taylor, who had arrived the day before yesterday fussed over Gabriella along with Sharpay and Kelsie, making sure that her hair, make up and dress were perfect, before moving on to their own dresses and hair.

Suddenly her father bustled into the room. Her parents had arrived yesterday, along with Troy's parents.

"Right then, its time Gabriella! Let's go!"

Gabriella nodded and the girls dropped the veil over her head. Taylor looked at her long time best friend," you look gorgeous Gabriella." She whispered.

Gabriella smiled at her best friend before she hugged her," thanks Taylor, you look gorgeous too."

Gabriella followed her father out of the house and took her position, she looped her hand around her fathers and then 'here comes the bride' started to play.

Gabriella dared not to look up, despite the arrangement they had been put in, she still wanted to impress the groom, she was honestly afraid that Troy wouldn't like the dress and run out on the wedding, it would embarrass her and her family a lot.

"Who gives this woman away?" she heard the priest ask.

"I do," said Mr. Montez. He gave her a quick hug and then strayed of to the side as Gabriella finally reached the altar.

Troy, who had been blown away by Gabriella's stunning appearance in her crème colored, silk taffeta, off shoulder, piconne style dress with a chapel train, finally snapped out of his daze and held his hand out to help Gabriella go over the little step. Gabriella hesitantly looked up at troy from behind her veil and took his hand. She gracefully climbed onto the small stage.



"Dearly beloved we are gathered here today to join these to in holy matrimony…." The priest continued on with his speech. Gabriella was as they called it quiet the 'blushing bride' and still dared not look up.

Soon time came for the 'I Do's'

"do you, Gabriella take this man as your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, to love and to cherish, through sickness and in health, rich or poor, from this day forward?" asked the priest.

"I do" said Gabriella quietly.

"Do you, Troy take this woman as your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, to love and to cherish, through sickness and in health, rich or poor, from this day forward?"

"I do"

The priest smiled," by the power invested in me by the state of Los Angeles, I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride."

Gabriella tensed up, she'd forgotten about that part.

Troy smiled as he saw her tense up, she hadn't thought about that… but he did.

He lifted her veil of her face and gave her a peck on her cheek. As soon as he pulled back, Gabriella smiled gratefully to him, he took her hand and they both walked down the aisle, the people cheered and clapped for them. Gabriella, who was clutching on to Troy's arm with both her hands giggled slightly.

The reception had been great, the parents danced their hearts out, their children were finally married! The Children, namely Troy and Gabriella laughed their hearts out, watching your parents trying to do John Travolta's 'groovy' moves and hurt their back doing it was quiet hilarious and the guests ate their hearts out, this was THE troy Bolton's wedding, the food was amazing!

-

-

Gabriella giggled slightly as she saw one of her uncles, uncle Jerry to be exact, in his own words,' go out there and give the paparazzi a piece of his mind!'

Troy soon joined her on the cushioned bench and rested his chin on her bare shoulder.

"Your uncle is…. Thoroughly interesting!" he said softly.

Gabriella laughed at his comment," You really have no idea."

Troy took his chin of her shoulders and straightened up as the 2 endured a slightly awkward silence, Troy immediately knew something was wrong, the way Gabriella was sitting just wasn't … right.



"Troy?" asked Gabriella, her voice slightly shaky, a stark contrast to what she had sounded like earlier.

"y- You won't hurt me right?" her voice was small and innocent, much like a child. She turned slightly to face troy and he saw that her eyes were glossy; a small tear escaped and trickled down her cheek.

"Oh Gabriella, babe, of course not, whether we like it or not, we're stuck together, I wouldn't dream of leaving you now unless you want me too. As much as we don't want to be, we are still married now, and I'll never ever try to hurt you intentionally Gabriella Montez." Whispered troy as he wiped the lone tear from her cheek.

"Bolton." Said Gabriella.

"Huh?" asked a confused troy.

"It's Gabriella Bolton, not Montez, at least not anymore."

Troy smiled a lopsided smile before engulfing his bride into a big bear hug.

"I'll always be there for you Bella, always" he whispered into her hair.

"I'll be there for you too Troy. I promise"


	8. Chapter 8

Gabriella looked herself over again. Tonight was the night of the MTV Music awards and Troy and been requested to give away the award of the best movie soundtrack of the year. Troy had, of course decided to take Gabriella along with him; this would be their first public appearance as 'Mr. and Mrs. Troy Bolton'

She was wearing a stunning one shoulder La Femme dress. It had two pleated straps over one shoulder that separated in the back; the skirt flowed and ebbed beautifully on her body, hugging her curves in just the right places. She was wearing jewellery set from Chanel. A metal and strass star necklace, and a metal and strass star bracelet. Troy's parents and given it to her for the engagement present they felt necessary to give. She had pulled her hair up into a messy bun, allowing a strand or two to fall out. She had used the 'smoky eye' for her make up with a light cherry gloss on her lips; she wore a simple pair of satin heels colored a midnight blue also from Chanel.

In other words, she looked mind-blowingly gorgeous.

She checked herself again, her critical eye going over every single detail of her appearance, and that moment troy came up to the room," hey Bella you read- whoa" troy's eyes widened in surprise.

Gabriella looked up and mistook his face of shock for distain. She huffed and threw herself on the bed," I look horrible don't I? Troy go on your own! You don't need an embarrassment like me to follow you around, I'll be fine, I'll just break out the Ben and jerry's, curl up in a ball and watch you from here, go –"

Troy smiled slightly," Bella, you look stunning, absolutely stunning." He said as he pulled her up to a standing position.

"r- really?" she asked, her eyes were filled with genuine concern," you mean that?"

He responded with a nod," lets go, we're gonna be late."

Gabriella checked herself in the mirror once more before grabbing a cute blue clutch and heading out the door behind troy, smiling giddy

_He thinks I look stunning…_

-

-

"You ready?" asked Troy as the limo pulled up in front of the red carpet.

Gabriella nodded," just don't leave me alone okay?" her voice was soft and small, laced with worry.

"Don't worry gab's, I'm not leaving your side!" declared troy as the door opened and he stepped out, only to be greeted with the blinding flashes of the cameras



Gabriella giggled slightly before sliding out of the limo seat herself and standing next to troy clutching his arm tightly.

Troy thanked Mr. Mac the driver and took one of Gabriella's hands in his own," you'll be fine Gabriella, I won't let anything happen to you." He whispering in her ear.

Gabriella nodded and pulled back, only then did she notice that troy was wearing a tie the same color as her dress, a smile crept up her face.

Troy put his hand on the small of her back and guided her through the throng of paparazzi that had gathered around the car. They were shooting questions like,' Troy, where did you meet Mrs. Bolton?' and,' how come we never heard about it before?'Gabriella looked slightly shaken up but she managed to smile as troy comfortingly moved the thumb of his hand on her back up and down. Troy, however, kept his face hard and emotionless until he got to the red carpet with the background.

He pulled Gabriella close to him and smiled at the cameras , as did Gabriella. Soon they were stopped by an E.T reporter. The first question she asked was," Gabriella you look absolutely beautiful tonight! What are you wearing?'

Gabriella blushed visibly," um, it's a la femme dress from his latest collection."

The reporter smiled and continued," and the jewellery?"

"Oh um, the necklace and the bracelet are from Chanel's new spring 2008 collection."

"Can we see the wedding ring?" asked the reporter.

Gabriella looked at troy who had been standing next to her the whole time, he gave a slight nod and Gabriella held out her left hand. The reporter gave a huge gasp," oh wow! This is beautiful!" Gabriella giggled. It really was a beautiful ring, a 7.51 caret round diamond showcased by a double row of melee diamonds.

"How did you two meet?" asked the reporter.

Gabriella looked down, what was she supposed to say? Just then troy spoke up," we were childhood friends, we even went to high school together, it's been long time coming." Said troy with ease that could make anyone, even Gabriella believe.

The reporter went on to ask troy about his basketball career and recent endorsements he had with Nike and then wished both husband and wife a pleasant evening.

Troy led Gabriella back to the carpet where he pulled her close and continued to smile for the camera.

"Troy why'd you say that." Asked Gabriella discreetly as she turned towards him.

Troy grinned," do you really want to be stuck with her explaining an arranged marriage?" he raised an eyebrow. Gabriella smiled and shook her head," I thought so" said troy as he pulled her even closer.



-

-

Gabriella smiled as she saw troy on stage with Carrie Underwood presenting the award. He look absolutely amazing in his suit, who thought that the basketball boy could clean up this well?

Troy grinned as he saw Gabriella and gave her one of his infamous winks, the camera's turned to Gabriella and she giggled and winked back. Some smiled at the flirting whilst others, like Chad and sharpay, who were watching on T.V gagged.

"They are so cute, it's sickening" said sharpay, as she watched.

As Troy made his way back to Gabriella, Sharpay messaged her. Gabriella flipped her phone open and blushed heavily as she read the message, she pushed the phone to troy who, once reading the message which read:

_Dear Gabi,_

_STOP FLIRTING INFRONT OF THE CAMERA'S! Their pointing at you all the time! I practically gagged on my pink lemonade from the sickeningly sweet flirting!_

_Xoxo Sharpay oxoX_

Laughed and messaged her back, leaning towards Gabriella so that she could see what he was writing.

_It's not our fault that we look so amazingly amazing that the cameras just can't keep their eyes of us!_

_Love ya, troy._

Gabriella stopped a giggle from emerging and smiled at troy. He smiled her favorite lop sided smile for her and turned back to the stage to watch a rather disturbing performance by 'Britney spears' ( a/n: no offence to B.S fans!)

Both Troy and Gabriella had an amazing night, they both enjoyed the company so much, making fun of the performances, fighting over who really deserved to win the award and occasionally drifting of to the choice of some people's clothes.

Troy often found himself compelled to just look at her and take in her extraordinary, yet simplistic beauty, and when he did, he could fight the small smile that crawled up to his lips. He in fact, found himself watching her more that watching the show. His heart fluttered when he saw her chuckle at something the host had said and the worse part was that every time she turned to him, his eyes immediately went to her lips, he so desperately wanted to kiss her senseless right there and then! He fought the conflicting emotions inside him and just smiled softly at her before turning his head to the stage, only to turn back once she did.

And it scared him.


	9. Chapter 9

Gabriella smiled graciously as the paparazzi made way for her through the crowd. It was now a day away from the big game held tomorrow night, the L.A Lakers against the New York Knicks, the best teams in the country, it was guaranteed to be the most exciting game of the year. Troy was of course at work and Gabriella decided to break her earlier promise of never going shopping again buy going to buy an outfit to support her husband in the game tomorrow.

"Gabriella!" called one person," where are you going?"

"Shopping!" said Gabriella.

Unlike Troy, Gabriella did answer some of the questions the paparazzi asked, as long as they weren't very personal, she'd answer them. Troy kept his face hard and rigid when the paparazzi were around him, refusing to answer any of the questions they posed.

"And where is Troy?" asked another

"He's at practice for the game tomorrow! I'm gonna buy an outfit for tomorrow actually." Replied Gabriella as she continued to walk.

"How do you think the game's gonna turn out?"

"Lakers will win! They've been training really hard and troy's made sure that their whipped into shape, their really awesome, the Knicks will have a really hard time beating them!" said Gabriella.

the camera's continued to flash as Gabriella walked on, purposefully pretending that those bright flashes of light were nothing, when she finally did get fed up, she stopped and turned to the horde of photographers," hey, do you think you could turn of the flash? I forgot to bring my shades and the flashes are really starting to get to me!"

"Nah it okay, we got all the pictures we needed, we'll see ya around!" said another one.

Gabriella smiled gratefully," thanks"

Gabriella walked happily to the mall paparazzi free. As she was walking she reflected on these 2 weeks of marriage. Truth be told, this marriage brought her more good then harm. She was away from her strained relationship with her father, she was going to collage, something she ad always dreamed of but never achieved and Troy was a great friend. She realized that they acted a lot like a normal married couple in their first few months would, except of course for the displays of affection.

Gabriella frowned, there was no denying that she had gotten very close to troy and sometimes she even noticed how incredibly good his hair looks first thing in the morning or how, his muscles flexed every time he played basketball on the court outside. But every time she would brush these thoughts of easily,_ love doesn't exist in an arranged marriage. It never has and never will._

The one thing Gabriella didn't want was to love someone because she learned it. You don't learn to love, you fall in love. Love isn't something you learn, love is a gush of emotions, something you feel, hear, taste, something you experience with all your senses, not learn.



She shook those thoughts out of her mind as she walked into her favorite shop. Victoria's Secret (A/n: they have some really good clothes so no, not in the lingerie way!)

She shopped around for a while until she found exactly what she was looking for, a yellow cotton dress that had gathered detail underneath the bust and a pair of purple skinnies. She quickly bought her items before buying a couple of caramel macchiato's and then catching a cab to the gym where troy's practice was held.

As Gabriella walked into the stadium, she noticed that Troy had the boy's in a circle, _maybe its like a pep talk or something._ Though Gabriella as she walked to the bleachers to sit down, taking a sip from one of the Macchiato's she'd brought.

As the circle broke, Troy looked towards the bleachers to find Gabriella waiting for him, he grinned. Something about her presence made all the exhaustion from the intense practice melt.

"Hey Bella! What are you doing here?" he asked as he walked up to her, gym bag and bottle in hand.

Gabriella shrugged," nothing really. I went shopping today and by the time I was done, I realized that you'd almost be done to so I came here to catch a ride!"

Troy smiled," and Whats that I spy in your hand?" he said eyeing the macchiato in her hands.

"Oh you know, just a caramel macchiato, with extra caramel, you know, your favorite." Said Gabriella carelessly.

"You better have another one of those Mrs. Bolton or else…."

"Or else what troy?" challenged Gabriella.

"Aw come on brie! You had to buy me one, you couldn't have come here without getting me one!" he whined.

Gabriella just laughed and rolled her eyes, "I have it," she said stretching out her other hand with the macchiato in it, but then she pulled it back quickly," have a bath first, you reek!"

Troy smiled before grabbing his clothes and racing of to the locker room," I'll be back in a minute Bella!" he shouted as he ran.

-

-

Finally, the big day arrived, game day.

Louie the Laker was already up in front rallying up the Laker fans, the basketball team was in the locker room, getting ready to go on.

"Good luck troy!" whispered Gabriella sweetly as she clutched on to Troy. When se pulled back Troy smiled. She was defiantly dressed for the occasion.



Along with the yellow top and purple skinnies, she wore yellow accessories in her hair and a pair of purple ballet flats, but the thing that would make her stand out from the rest of the crowd, was the fact that she was wearing his warm up jacket, she was the first and now the only girl to have ever worn his jacket.

The paparazzi would go wild.

"Basket ballers get ready!" came a voice over the intercoms in the locker room. Gabriella quickly tiptoed and gave troy a kiss on the cheek," I'll be cheering for you Troy Boy!" she said softly before hugging Chad, Zeke and Jason. She grabbed Sharpay and Kelsie's hands and pulled them out to the court. They sat right up front directly behind the Lakers Bench; soon Louie got in front of them and led the fans in a cheer.

The atmosphere was amazing, every single fan in the stadium was cheering loudly, Gabriella, sharpay and Kelsie being perhaps the loudest.

"Ladies and gentlemen! Introducing the Lakers team and their MVP Troy Bolton!" shouted the man over the microphone. Gabriella and the girls jumped up and cheered loudly. The team got together in a circle and did their pre game rituals.

-

-

Through out the game, Gabriella couldn't take her eyes of one player and his name was Troy Bolton. She watched as he effortless glided across the court and jump up to score a basket. She watched him skillfully avoid the opponent's blocks and perfectly execute his blocks. She watched his warm blue eyes, now a little darker, dart across the court, looking for teammates he could pass the ball to, she watched him shake his head to take the wisps of sandy brown hair out of his eyes, she watched his muscles flex as he ran and threw the ball.

And she knew that she'd be lying if she said that at that very moment, she didn't feel like running up to him and pressing her lips to his, she she'd be lying if she said that she didn't yearn to run her hands up and down his chest. Because at that moment, Troy Bolton never looked so freaking attractive to Gabriella.

She mentally slapped herself, remind her that love doesn't exist in an arranged marriage, she looked back on the court to realize that troy was making the final shot from the 3 pointer line. She held her breath as she watched troy concentrate, ignoring all the fans and just concentrating on getting the ball into the hoop.

The second the ball left his hand, everyone stood up, with either their fists in their mouths or their hands on their head.

The ball rounded the ring 3 times before falling… falling into the ring!

The Lakers fans cheered and clapped some even crying tears of joy, they did it! The L.A Lakers is officially the best basketball team in the world! The players surrounded troy and clapped 

him on the back, and slapping hands with him. Gabriella and the girls cheered loudly and jumped before catching each other in a big bear hug, wide grins creasing their faces.

Hardly anyone could hear the announcer announce the Lakers win. The girls ran down to the court straight to their respective partners.

"TROY!" shouted Gabriella as she ran into his sweaty arms," you did it!" she said her voice now muffled against his chest, Troy laughed before picking her up and spinning her around," I did it!" he said as he put Gabriella on the floor, only to have her arms encircle his neck once more, he grinned as he wrapped his arms around her waist pulling her closer and burying his face into her soft brown curls.

They stood hugging in the middle of the court before she looked up. It was only then did she realize how close his face was to her's. His forehead landed on her's and their noses were touching. Gabriella moved her head a little bit just enough to be able to feel his breath on her lips. They both leaned in, unconscious to their surroundings, their lips were just about to touch…

**Hey guys! I know I haven't been putting the author's notes on here and so I decided to do it now. I'm glad ya'll are enjoying the story! And wow 94 reviews! That's amazing! I have a favor to ask though! Could every one who put me on story alert please review, just this once! Please! I really want to get 110 reviews! Please!**

**REMINDER: troy and Gabi haven't actually kissed, they were about to though!**

**Peaceout!**

**Bhavana**


	10. Chapter 10

"And this year's MVP is for the third time…. TROY BOLTON!" screamed the announcer over the microphone.

Gabriella snapped out of her reverie and quickly moved her head so that troy's lips, instead of colliding with her's, collided on her cheek. As they both pulled back, troy looked confused as Gabriella giggled nervously," um, you'd better go and get the trophy Troy." She said as she looked down. Troy nodded still confused as he grabbed her hand and ran to where the announcer was holding up the award.

Gabriella put away the awkward moment and concentrated on looking happy for troy. In truth, she was happy for troy, really happy, but when something like what just happened, happens it pretty hard to concentrate. But soon, she got caught up in the heat and almost forgot about the incident, _almost._

She watched troy's mouth move from her position in his arms as he talked to the crowd, giving a speech of sorts.' _What had just almost happened there'?_ Thought Gabriella,'_ were we almost about to – to kiss? No, that couldn't be. Could it? Does troy expect me to be intimate with him? I'm not ready for that yet! Oh gosh... this is so confusing!'_ Gabriella heard her name being called and she immediately snapped out of her reverie.

"Gabriella! How do you feel about Troy's win?" asked a reporter.

Gabriella quickly composed herself," I'm proud of him, of course! I knew he could do it!"

And so the rest of the day went on like that, Troy, Gabriella and the other Laker members attended various press conferences and interviews.

Finally at 11 pm, troy and Gabriella reached their sprawling mansion.

"Gabriella," sighed troy as he pulled the key out of the ignition," we have to talk about earlier today..."

"What are you talking about Troy?" asked Gabriella, even though she knew what he was talking about.

"The kiss, Gabriella! The almost kiss! We have to talk about it." Said troy as he stared ahead.

"What about it?" asked Gabriella in a shaky voice.

"why'd you pull back?" asked troy softly as he turned to look at her," didn't you feel it too?" he continued, referring to the jolt of emotions that sprang up inside him when his forehead had landed on hers.

Gabriella remained silent.

"didn't you?" asked troy, louder this time," cause I was so sure you did. I saw it in your eyes Gabriella, you wanted it just as much as I did. Why did you pull back?"

Gabriella looked up at Troy, her eyes were red and a tear ran down her cheek," We aren't like that Troy. " She answered in a shaky voice.

"Like what?" asked troy," The past few weeks I've been spending with you, have been, possibly the best weeks of my life, and during these weeks, I've started to like you, a lot more than I did before."

Gabriella's head snapped in Troy's direction," t- that's not possible." She whispered as she shook her head.

"Why not? Don't you believe in love? I might even –"

"Don't even say it Troy." Interrupted Gabriella," love doesn't exist in an arranged marriage. It never has and it never will."

"since when?" cried Troy," love isn't something you can control, Gabriella! It just happens!"

"How do you know that that's happened with us? Huh? You could have just _learnt_ to love me, Troy. That isn't real love! It's fooling yourself! I don't want you to kid yourself and for me to kid myself, I don't want to learn to love anyone, I want it to be real! How do you know that this is the real thing? Love is blind, Troy." Said Gabriella impetuously , as she opened the door of the car and ran out.

Troy immediately jumped out of the car and ran behind her," you want proof?" he yelled," you want proof that what I feel for you is real? If I had learnt to love you, I would overlook the little things you do that others find annoying, like scolding me for not putting the seat down of the toilet, or never being able to concentrate with even the slightest of noise, but those are the little things that make me feel this way for you! Your quirkiness is what I like the most! I see no flaws in you, you are an absolute apotheosis for me. An Apotheosis." His voice softened to a whisper as he finished.

Gabriella slowed down to a stop and turned slowly to face troy, who was about two meters away from her. Her cheeks were wet with tears and her breathing was heavy and laboured," do you- do you mean that?" she asked softly.

Troy stepped forward cautiously," with all my heart."

Gabriella let out a big sob and ran into his open arms, where she continued to cry.

"Do you believe me?" asked troy softly.

Gabriella nodded into Troy's chest and troy let out a sigh of relief and kissed her forehead," Just promise me, we'll go slow." Said Gabriella when her crying finally seized.

"uh, sweetie?" chuckled troy softly," we're already married, in case you.. Hadn't noticed."

-

-

-

" I'm not much to look at, nothing to see. Just glad I'm living, and happy to be, I've got a woman, crazy for me, she's funny that way." Sang Troy as he got ready early the next morning.

"Hmmm, Frank Sinatra, should I be worried?" asked a soft, sweet, slightly drowsy voice.

Troy laughed heartily," not particularly, I'm just... very happy today."

"I am too!" said Gabriella, punctuating her sentence by jumping in Troy's back," where are you going?"

"To my publicist. The season's finally over and this means ton's of interviews and special guest appearances. The usual, and you, my darling wife," said troy as he took Gabriella to the kitchen downstairs and plopped her onto the table, encasing her with his arms," have to be very, very careful about what you say to the paparazzi. If they find out about the special appearances, the producers won't be happy."

"Got it!" exclaimed Gabriella as she swept her thumb and her index finger across her lips, showing the sign of 'zipping up' her lips.

"Good girl" laughed Troy, before kissing her nose and her forehead," I have to go now, you should eat the food cook made earlier. Might I suggest the eggs, they were glorious."

Gabriella giggled," I'll take note and I'll walk you to the door." She continued as he hopped of the counter and took hold of troy's hand, leading him to the door.

"How long are you gonna take?" asked Gabriella as they walked across the vast house.

"Give or take 2 hours. It never takes long, after that I'm taking you out to lunch, I want you to meet some people. Okay?"

"Yup. Is it formal?"

"Well, kind off, I gave Kristen, the head maid, what I want you to wear, and someone will come and help you dress."

"Wow, is it that important?" asked Gabriella.

Troy laughed," no, but it's just going to be hard for you to put on by yourself."

Gabriella raised an eyebrow, "trust me! It's nothing bad!" laughed Troy as he walked out the door.

Gabriella shrugged as she shut the door and went to eat her breakfast.

-

-

"Ma'm?" asked Kristen as she stepped into Gabriella's bedroom, where she was watching TV," It's time for you to get ready for your lunch with Mr Bolton and his company. Miss Tara is here to assist you."

"Oh," said Gabriella as she sat up on her large 4 poster bed," send her in then."

Kristen nodded and brought Miss Tara into the room 5 minutes later," Mrs Bolton! It's nice to finally meet you, Mr Bolton spoke of you very fondly when he came to buy your beautiful sari!" said a tall woman with caramel coloured skin and hair that reached down to her waist. She was wearing a gorgeous green sari.

"A sari?" asked Gabriella," what's that?"

Miss Tara smiled as she took out a long, beautiful red and orange embroidered cloth," This, Mrs Bolton is a sari. It's a traditional Indian dress, that married woman normally wear to special occasions."

"Why would Troy want me to wear it to lunch?" questioned Gabriella. This was odd, why did the dress matter so much?

"I'm not allowed to tell you anything else, Mrs Bolton, you have to find out the rest, yourself!" said Miss Tara as she smiled at Gabriella, a mysterious twinkle in her eyes.

"Oh," said Gabriella, confused by the whole situation.

"Well, let's get started then!" exclaimed Miss Tara her smile widening into a grin.

-

-

-

**FIRST OFF: I'm totally sorry for all this! I know, I'm a horrible writer who can't make up my mind! It's just that when the family came to stay, alot of you complained that there was no Troyella, and I thought about it, and I agree. So I'm gonna redo a few chapters, this means that their kiss IS gonna be pushed back. But I have a good reason! My new storyline is a little more drama, but the drama creates a perfect time for their first kiss. So I am gonna grovel at your feet and beg for forgiveness. Good news is I'm on holiday so I have time to update! Yay, right?! I'm gonna try and update this tomorrow or day after. No Promises though, I'm not sure! I have certain writing moods and I've been in one lately. ROFL. Bad excuse, but it's the truth.**

**Bhavana:D**


	11. Chapter 11

"Turn around Mrs Bolton, you are ready." Said Miss Tara as she spun Gabriella around slowly to face the mirror.

Gabriella gasped, she looked gorgeous! She was wearing a beautiful red and dark orange georgette sari, a small orange and gold kundan set, and red high heels. Her hair was left to cascade down over shoulders and her makeup was very light, extenuating her natural beauty.

"And the finishing touch..." whispered Miss Tara as she placed a long, red, decorative _bindi._

"_Waah! _You look just like a _Dhulan Rani_! Even _Aishwaria _has nothing on you!" exclaimed Miss Tara as she clapped.

Gabriella giggled as she looked at herself," I love this dress, its gorgeous! Where did Troy get it?"

"Well at my shop of course! Come by anytime Mrs Bolton, I'd be happy to assist you." Said Miss Tara as she handed Gabriella her business card," Let's get going Mrs Bolton, It's time!"

Gabriella nodded as she took in a big breath and checked her appearance once more. She picked up her red hand bag, swung it over the shoulder and walked out of the room with her head held high and her red, orange and golden bangles clanking with every step.

-

-

-

Gabriella gasped silently as she entered the upscale contemporary Indian restaurant. The pools of black walls, furnishing and accessories were enhanced with metallic bronze and sand which whispered class. The textured walls contrasted with the polished black wood and ivory leathered furniture, despite its large size the ambience was still warm and inviting.

"Welcome to the Yantra. My name is Sanjay. How may I help you?" Said a tall, Indian man behind the clean cut 'shattered' glass counter.

Gabriella snapped out of her daze and turned to the man," Oh, uh, I'm meeting my husband, Mr Troy Alexander Bolton."

"Ahh, Mr. Bolton, He has rented the gold room tonight. Allow me to take you madam." Said Sanjay as he stepped out from behind the counter and led Gabriella through the restaurant. All around there were many classy people eating, drinking and laughing. The waiters looked like they were thoroughly trained in the art of fine dining. They knew everything, down to the way they served champagne.

"Here we are Madam, enjoy." Said Sanjay as he opened the door and bowed slightly to Gabriella.

The first thing Gabriella noticed when she stepped into the room was the large table set right in the middle of the room. It was golden and it had a marvolous arrangement set up. The tall crystal vase in the middle held a wide array of Flowers. And Crystal swans sat at various places on the table. In short, it was probably the most glamorous place Gabriella had ever seen.

Finally, her eyes landed on the people sitting around the table. An elderly Indian man was sitting at the head of the table, one his left was an elderly Indian woman and to his right was Troy. Next to the woman were 2 girls, they both looked like they were in their teens.

Shyness flooded Gabriella as she quickly averted her gaze to her feet.

"Wow..." she heard troy whisper and a small smile crept up her face, but she still didn't look up. An awkward silence filled the room until one of the girls, the older one finally kicked Troy under the table. He immediately snapped out of his reverie and got up to receive Gabriella.

"Bella, you look gorgeous." He whispered as he pulled her into a hug," absolutely stunning."

Gabriella giggled in thanks as she looked into Troy's light blue eyes.

"Bella, I'd like you to meet my extended family. This is Ajay uncle," he said gesturing to the elderly man at the head of the table," next to him is his wife, Kirti auntie and these two girls are my cousins, Bhavana and Ankita." Gabriella smiled and politely said hello to everyone Troy introduced.

"Guys, this is Gabriella, my wife." Proclaimed Troy, a wide grin on his face.

Everybody laughed and greeted Gabriella warmly giving her hugs and light kisses on her cheeks.

Gabriella was a little confused by the whole situation, how come Troy's extended family was Indian? He looked nothing like one himself, and yet, he had Indian relatives.

Troy understood the confusion on her face and took it as his cue to explain," Gabriella, when my dad was 2 his mother passed away and 10 years later, Grandpa remarried to a woman named Kamla, who was an Indian. She had Kirti auntie from a previous marriage and so technically, she is my dad's sister, making her my aunt and these two gorgeous ladies," he said as he put his arms around Ankita and Bhavana," my cousins!"

"Really?" asked Gabriella incredulously," that is so cool!"

Troy threw his head back and laughed," thanks Bella"

-

-

Half way through Desert, Bhavana excused herself to the toilet, and oddly enough came back with 2 large red Gucci suite cases rolling behind her.

"Wow, you get free Gucci in bathrooms now? Maybe it's time for me to go there!" said Gabriella, perplexed.

Bhavana laughed," I wish they gave Gucci in the bathrooms!" she said exclaimed," these, my dear _Bhabi_, is something very important for both you and us, my mom already thinks it's a bad omen that we are giving this to you after you wedding."

"Well it's true!" said Kirti Aunty, her distinctive Indian accent evident in her voice, "The gods will frown upon us."

"Kirti, only you believe in all that _kachara._ The gods will not frown upon us, relax." Said Ajay uncle," but I do think it's about time our dear _bhahu rani_ gets to see it, don't you think?"

That was all Ajay uncle had to say, Kirti and Ankita jumped out of their seats and pounced onto the bags, pulling and tugging at the zips, making sure everything was in place.

"It is customary for the family of the groom to give something to the bride before the marriage, to welcome her into the family. _Bhabi_ this is what we have gotten you. We have bought you everything, from hand bags, to clothes, even make up. It is the least we could buy at such short notice."

And with that, the 3 women started pulling out the most gorgeous traditional Indian clothes. The prettiest traditional jewellery and the most glamorous handbags. Along with that, they pulled out a large make up box with every make up instrument possible. There were also the odd shoes, shades and hair accessories. They even gave bed sheets of a 500 thread count and the most gorgeous gold and silver plated pen. Gabriella was reduced to tears. She was being given the most gorgeous things she'd ever seen by complete strangers!

"Thank you, so much," Gabriella choked out as she moved to hug Kirti aunty," Thank you so much, I'll treasure this stuff forever!"

And so the rest of the night was spent over Gabriella, Kirti Aunty and the girls gushing over the various clothes and jewellery, making appointments to see each other again and simple meaningless talks that stretched on until the restaurant had to close. Needless to say, it was one of the most amazing nights Gabriella had had after the marriage.

-

-

Gabriella sighed in content as she fell onto the bed later that night," your family is so amazing Troy," she whispered softly," they are so warm and inviting!"

Troy laughed," they're only like that with people they like, and I'm pretty sure they adored you, especially aunty. That famous Montez smile definitely worked its magic."

Gabriella giggled tiredly as she snuggled into the warm comforter," thank you for the amazing night, Troy," she said as she moved closer to him and enveloped him in a hug," I had the best time ever."

Troy who was at first shocked at her actions, relaxed and wrapped his arms around her body as he smelled in the sweet strawberry sent of her hair," anytime, Bella. Anytime."

**AUTHORS NOTE!**

**Hey guys! I'm sorry for the super late update! I've been so amazingly busy with everything else, so please don't hit me! Haha. For those of you who are STILL reading this, you're awesome! I love you! I know it's really boring, but in about the next two chapters, there's gonna be DRAMAAA!!! Chocolate chip cookies for whoever who can guess what it's gonna be! Haha.**

**I'll try and get it out sooner, but I can't make any promises! **

**Lastly, WOW, 248 reviews, amazing. I can't believe how awesome you guys are! Is it foolish for me to wish for this number to go up to 260 now? Come on! I know you guys can do it! Just one tiny little review! Please!**

**Make my day!**

**Love you,**

**Bhavana**

_Waah! – wow_

_Dhulan – Rani – princess bride_

_Aishwaria – as in aishwaria rai, considered the most beautiful girl in bollywood. She won miss universe some odd years ago._

_Bhabi – brothers wife. Sister in law_

_Bahu – daughter in law, rani - princess_

_Katchara – rubbish, shit, crap._


	12. Sorry! I know I suck!

Hi!

Okay, Number 1, I owe you guys a BIG APOLOGY. I'm such a crappy person, I swear. I totally just left you all hanging. I'm so so so so so sorry! What happened was, I kinda just, lost my muse. I didn't feel like writing HSM any more. I considered just forcing myself to get it over and done with. But, when the authors heart isn't in her writing, it just looses its spark, you know? So I just, didn't write. I realize I could have updated you on this stuff, but I'm just such a sissy. I was afraid that you guys would totally loose interest in me and stuff.

On top of that, so much drama has happened this year! Its been wild and crazy and hectic. I didn't want to WRITE about drama too, you know? I just couldn't organize everything. I've been a journalist with the national newspaper too. So really, I had no time.

On top of that, I guess you could say I tried to conform to society. Which was stupid. Really really really stupid. I realize that now. Writing fanfictions brought me so much joy once upon a time, and seeing all your guys reviews REALLY made my day. I kinda miss that joy. I want it back. Fuck society, if I like it, I'm gonna do it.

I was reading Unproper Grammar's story today and I felt that need, that urge to write for HSM again. My muse, has returned. And I'm eternally grateful for that. My exams are gonna finish in 2 weeks and 3 days, and after that, I'll be having a bit of a hectic time. Somewhere in the last week of june, I'll have nothing but time. Thats when I'll start writing all over again. This time I'm gonna be so much more organized. I'll plan out my chapters, I'll set myself a word limit so that my chapters are long and substantial, I'll read everything a billion times so there isn't even one mistake. You guys deserve nothing but the best!

I'd like to think that I've honed my writing skills a lot this year. I think I'm a lot better at it, and thats why I would like to try and redo all of my One Shot's and Chapter stories. Make them even better 

Lastly, some added incentives :P

I'm gonna make playlists or soundtracks for every single fanfic, including oneshots. Perhaps even some album art :P

I'm gonna use my blog alot for this. Keeping you guys updated on everything that I'm doing and I'll even put up some preview's of the stories I'll put up. However, I also want my blog for a place for us to interact. I want you to tell me what you want to see me doing and I'll do my level best to do that for you. I want to form a personal relationship with each and every single one of you because you all mean so much to me. Really, you do.

Once again guys, I'm so so so so so so so so sorry, I hope you can find it somewhere in your heart to forgive me. I'm so sorrrryyy. If you give me a chance, I promise I won't let you down 

Love you all!

B


	13. OH GOD

OH GOD, NO NO, NOT JUUUNEE! END OF NOV! IDK WHY I SAID JUNE!! Sooooorryy!!!


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